Victoria’s latest destination diner is not in the most obvious location, but it’s one that makes a lot of sense. Babae, opening January 25 at Hotel Vera in Ballarat, is on the doorstep of some of Victoria’s most committed artisan farmers, winemakers and distillers, which it will use to its advantage to wow visitors.

“We want to give people a truly regional experience,” says executive chef and co-owner Tim Foster, formerly of Kyneton’s hatted Source Dining. “We don’t want to be just another restaurant.”

In his mission to show Ballarat’s bounty, every dish features either an ingredient grown by a local farmer or by the same people cooking it for you. Foster and partner Peter Barton have a small plot of land between Ballarat and Bendigo, where they grow peaches, citrus, apples and even the restaurant’s flowers.

A summer starter of steamed custard is topped with farm-fresh zucchini flowers. Strawberries grown near their property are teamed with white chocolate, sable and basil for dessert.

What they can’t grow, they source from the likes of Pyrenees White Lamb and Goldfields Farmhouse Cheese.

The 26-seat Babae, which replaces Hotel Vera’s previous fine-diner, Underbar, after that venue moved out in August, is part of a bigger partnership between Foster and Barton and the hotel’s owners, David Cook-Doulton and Martin Shew. The four are also working on another restaurant and bar, expected to open in March, at The Ernest Hotel in the centre of Bendigo.

The Ernest Hotel occupies a former bank building, and the street-level restaurant, to be called Terrae, will feature a bank vault with a domed ceiling as a private dining room for eight people. Compared with Babae’s fine-dining menu, Terrae’s will be more straightforward and rustic, with handmade pasta a focus.

A subterranean 40-seat cocktail bar will be “a place to escape to”, says Foster, with a locally made walnut bar, original stone surfaces and four booths set into alcoves.

Wines, spirits used in cocktails, and beers at both Babae and Terrae will be made in the surrounding region. Bendigo was named a UNESCO City of Gastronomy in 2019, one of two Australian cities with the title.

For now, Babae will only offer five- and seven-course degustations, which is all the more reason to make a weekend of it.

Babae is open for dinner Thursday to Saturday; for lunch Friday to Sunday; and for breakfast daily for Hotel Vera guests.

710 Sturt Street, Ballarat, hotelballarat.com.au/babae

Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that Bendigo was the only Australian city to be named a UNESCO City of Gastronomy. Launceston also holds that title.